Painter and sculptor. He was son of a banker. Although prepared for the law, he abandoned it for painting, studying at the School of art and in Italy, copying 15th- and 16th-century masters. He was gifted as a draftsman and a brilliantly subtle and penetrating portraitist. He exhibited for six years in the Salon (1865 to 1870), but later ceased showing there and exhibited with the impressionists, whose works he admired although his approach often differed from theirs. Trained in the linear tradition of Ingres, Degas shared with the impressionists their directness of expression and the interest in and portrayal of contemporary life. His favorite subjects were ballet dancers, women at their toilette, cafe life, and race-track scenes. Gradually he turned away from the medium of oil painting because of his failing eyesight. He produced more freely executed, glowing pastels and charcoal drawings. His works in sculpture include many notable studies of dancers and horses. (bio by: Jelena)